UK's Virgin Media O2 in Talks to Access Openreach Fibre Network

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On 30 October, UK telecoms operator Virgin Media O2 was nearing a wholesale fibre broadband network access agreement with Openreach, a subsidiary of BT Group, planning to use Openreach's existing infrastructure to provide broadband services in areas outside its own network coverage.

According to the negotiation arrangements disclosed by the Financial Times, Virgin Media O2 intends to grow new broadband customers through Openreach's existing fibre network, reducing capital expenditure on building its own access networks in certain areas. The company is also considering pausing plans to upgrade parts of its hybrid fibre-coaxial network to full fibre, and adjusting future arrangements for expanding its own network.

Virgin Media O2 and affiliated network operator Nexfibre currently cover a combined total of approximately 19 million UK residential and business premises, of which about 9 million are ready for full-fibre access. Openreach is expanding full-fibre network coverage across the UK, with plans to cover approximately 25 million premises by the end of 2026. If the two parties reach a wholesale access agreement, Virgin Media O2 will be able to expand the reach of its broadband sales through an existing third-party network.

The network investment adjustments are related to Virgin Media O2's financial position. The report noted that the company faces a debt burden of approximately £22 billion, and shareholders are seeking cost savings of up to £600 million. The company had previously planned to obtain approximately £1.1 billion in cash by transferring about 4.6 million premises of network coverage assets to Nexfibre, but the related asset transaction and network integration arrangements have been affected by a UK competition regulatory review.

Nexfibre reached an agreement in February 2026 to acquire Substantial Group, which owns UK fibre network operator Netomnia. The deal was valued at approximately £2 billion and was originally intended to support subsequent network expansion and integration investment. The UK Competition and Markets Authority has raised objections regarding the transaction's competitive impact, and the relevant shareholders plan to challenge the regulatory opinion.

Virgin Media O2's previously published second-quarter operating data showed that its full-fibre network covers approximately 9 million premises, with approximately 5.5 million consumer fixed-line customers. The company continues to provide gigabit broadband services through its existing hybrid fibre-coaxial network, and in October completed 2Gbps broadband upgrades in 18 areas.